New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-04-13
DEBATE ON THE CRIMES BILL.
MIR. HOLMES SPEAKS FORTHE GOVERNMENT
TIE MEASURE CRITICISED By HUGH CHILDERs, ONE
OF ITS SUPPORTERS.

TIE MEASURE CRITICISED BY HUGH CIILDERs, ONE
OF ITS SUPPORTERS.
LONDON, April 12-There we're not fifty r.embers
in the House of Commons tonight. The dehat: the
Crimes hill will 90 formally until Thursday, when
the House will fill up again. Mr. Gladstone will revive
interest IN Parliament 10y speaking on Friday. The
Government anxious to reach the second reading OF
the Crimes bill without resortng to CLOSURE and will
not insist upon division before April o. Speaker
Peel has intimated to MI. Gladstone that if the head
of the Government demands closure after reasonable
period of debate he will always deem it his duty 10
acquesce and that this rule will apply to any Govern
ment, Tory or Liberal.
This afternoon, after Speader Peel had thanked the
House for its Indulgence during his Illness, Mr..
Holmes, AttorneyGenerdl for Ireland, reopened the
debate the Governments side in favor OF the Irish
Grimes Act amendment bill. He contended that the
measure was fair and reasonable one. and that none
OF its provisions would interfere infringe with con-
stitutional public rights. The House should ie-
member Mr. Holmes argued that society IN Ireland was
in state cf dsOrganization that CRIME went unde-
teccd nnd that the ople seemed to sympathze with
the criminals aud thwarted attempts to obtain evil
dence In cases where the evidence clear against
prisoners the jures refused to convict, so that the
sysem of trial by jury had absolutely broken down in
Irelaud 1t absurd to say that crime in Ireland
should 20 unpublished rather than that such efectual
means as the changing of venue should be taken to
secure the due administration OF the law. Mr. HOLMES
hoped it would not be necessary, il tho bill passed. to
have frequent recourse to change OF venue Derisye
Parnellte cheers.
Referring to the question of summary jurisdiction,
the Attorney General said this the first time
such provision had been made to deal with often ccs
Under summary process the resident magistrates IN
Ireland would be more executive officers than the
justices of TT Peace in England while every possible
safeguard would be taken to prevent the magistrates
from interfering Mess the laws OF the country
at defiance As to the provisions enabling the VicerOy
to suppress dangerous associations the bill lett the
exercise OF the VicerOys power under the veto OF
Parliament The Government adhered to the proposal
to make the bill perpetual. The misfortune In the
enactment of the past OF the kind was that
they were not made perpetual Parliament couih, CT
course repeal the present law whenever but
long its power TO sustain the law was required 1t
would remain in force. lCheers
Hugh G. Chders said although he supported the
amendment to the bill he admitted that some OF the
bills provisions would mt he Objectionable If they
were made part of q general law Tor both Ireland and
England but those features of the proposed law
which the Government especially intended to apply
TO Ireland were upwarranted and would be found to
evoke disorder instead of remedying existing evils
why propose coercion when there was no increase
of crime shown in Ireland Before the last election
at least ninety Conservative members OF Parliament
declared against any further coercion. The Marquis
uf Salisbury himself stated that IL impractcabe
and Impossible to reimpose on Ireland any measure
like the former Crimes act. The Government would
soon learn, should the present bill become law how
disastrous their to the old and bad sys-
TEN OF epresson-worse than ever now when the
representatives OF ivesixths OF the Irish people OPP
posed the measure
Mr. Childers protested strongly against giving the
proposed overs TO the resident magistrates whom he
knew, he said, would be unfit by reason of their lack
of esal training properly exercise them. especially
in cases involving the application OF the extreme pro-
visions of the Whtcboy acts and the legal construc-
ton OF the word conspiracy The proposal TO try Irish
prisoners in England nongst the worst features
of the BILL What would have been said II ever it had
becn proposed 10 send Engshmen TO trial out OF their
country Tor crimes committed in Ill Parnellitc
cheers The speaker ridiculed the ooseness of the
definitions contained in the bill, and warned the Gov
ernment that for this reason alone a number OF its
clauses would prove imperative.